A rally will be held Wednesday morning ahead of delegations to City Council that will again call for the City to make public transit free for those using personal mobility devices and Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) card holders.
Council will debate a request from the Accessibility Committee for Persons with Disabilities to create a new program that is the same as the old free fare program, but would complement “Fare Assist” and not be a reversal of the new program.
In calling for a new free fare program instead of bringing back the old fare policy, the ACPD’s proposal is considered new business and will be debated at the General Issues Committee.
A release from the Hamilton Community Benefits Network states that groups participating in the rally include: the Disability Justice Network Ontario (DJNO), Accessibility Hamilton Alliance (AHA), ACORN, Council of Canadians Hamilton Chapter, the Canadian Council of the Blind Hamilton, Hamilton 350.org, Hamilton Community Benefits Network, and YMCA Hamilton.
The rally is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m.
Background
Hamilton’s transit agency ended its decades-old practice of free fares for mobility device users in July 2024, replacing it with the “Fare Assist” program offering a 30 percent discount to low-income residents. The policy change ended a practice dating back to the mid-1990s, when the former Region of Hamilton-Wentworth first implemented free transit for wheelchair users because the first low-floor accessible buses only had rear door ramps, and the Region deemed installing rear door fare collection boxes too costly.
The transition has been contentious since it was first proposed in May 2023, with disability advocates repeatedly calling for a reversal. Council has stood behind the change.
In April, the HSR reported that 5,889 people had been approved for Fare Assist, generating $660,000 in revenue with a $288,000 subsidy through 415,681 discounted trips.
Advocates delegated at that meeting, again calling for reversal of the program and a return to the previous programs: free fare for those with disabilities and the Affordable Transit Pass program, which offered a 50 percent discount on monthly passes for low-income residents. Fare Assist can be used as a single-ride discount.
Council received the delegations, but did not move to adopt any of their suggested changes.
A few weeks later, the Accessibility Committee for Persons with Disabilities voted unanimously to continue opposing Fare Assist, and is now proposing a new “sibling program” that would provide free transit specifically to low-income persons with disabilities.
Items 6.4 and 8.5 on GIC Agenda
Delegations regarding the ACPD motion will be item 6.4 on the agenda, behind three other delegation blocks. Council will discuss the request as item 8.5, the fifth business item on the agenda.
The meeting begins at 9:30 a.m. and will be livestreamed on YouTube.
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Published: June 9, 2025
Last updated: June 9, 2025
Author: Joey Coleman
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